'Shame kept Les Pringle quiet about his HIV' says partner

STIGMA and shame surrounding his HIV diagnosis are what led Les Pringle to infect others, his partner has said.

Les Pringle has been jailed for infecting a former girlfriend with the HIV virus

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STIGMA and shame surrounding his HIV diagnosis are what led Les Pringle to infect others, his partner has said.

The Chronicle revealed yesterday that the photographer’s girlfriend has vowed to stand by him after he was jailed for passing the virus on to his ex, even though he gave it to her too.

But Pringle’s partner firmly believes that the stigma HIV attracts is the reason why so many people pass the virus on to others.

And today the mum, who tested positive after having a relationship with Pringle, has today lifted the lid on what it’s like to live with the widely-misunderstood condition.

She said: “HIV is one of those things that you think is never going to happen to you, but I’m living proof it can happen to anyone.

“The stigma is worse than the disease itself. And if more people were willing to talk about it openly, we might not be in this position now.”

The woman, who the Chronicle has agreed not to name, decided to take an HIV test after being in a relationship with former wedding photographer Pringle.

She believes that at the time he had unprotected sex with her he was in complete denial about his own diagnosis and was unable to face up to it.

And she says his inability to accept he was HIV positive was the reason he did not tell her or his former partner, who later contacted police leading to his grievous bodily harm conviction.

“He did the classic thing of throwing the leaflets away immediately after he left the clinic,” she said. “I have met so many people with HIV now and the stigma is horrendous.

“It’s like a pattern. At first HIV is very scary. At first you feel undesirable and you feel like your life is over in some respects and you feel like you can never ever have a normal relationship.”

However, the woman, who is in her 40s, says living with HIV is not as frightening as people first imagine and sufferers can live a happy, healthy life.

“When I was diagnosed they said ‘the bad news is you’re positive, but the good news is we can medicate you, this is not a death sentence’,” she explained.

“Now I’m living with HIV, I know it’s manageable.

“It is not classed as a terminal illness, it’s a chronic illness.”

The woman has always been open with her family about her HIV status. She believes if more people adopted this attitude more people would get tested and feel comfortable talking to partners about it.

“I decided to tell my children because they needed to know and needed to know I would be all right. To be able to know and process it themselves, they needed all the information.

“I just take it one day at time. You have got to make the most of what you are given in life. I take the positive about whatever situation I find myself am in. It’s just something I have got to live with.”

Pringle, 48, of Rennington Avenue, Tynemouth, was jailed for three-and-a-half years at Newcastle Crown Court on Monday.